The 2014 Sundance Film Festival is January 16-26th, and there are some great projects by women filmmakers in this year’s program. Now, I know the majority of us won’t be making it out to Park City, Utah later this month (myself included), but I encourage you to take a look at the films that will be screening. Not only is it really inspiring, but it’s also a great way to get some films on your radar that you want to follow and support. Here are just a few films I’m excited about:
Laggies – Directed by Lynn Shelton, written by Andrea Seigel
Category: Premieres
Description from Sundance: “Laggies is a coming of age story about a 28-year-old woman stuck in permanent adolescence. Unable to find her career calling, still hanging out with the same friends, and living with her high school boyfriend, Megan must finally navigate her own future when an unexpected marriage proposal sends her into a panic. Cast: Keira Knightley, Sam Rockwell, Chloë Grace Moretz, Ellie Kemper, Jeff Garlin, Mark Webber.”
I’m a big fan of Lynn Shelton’s work as a writer/director (Touchy Feely, Your Sister’s Sister), so I’m excited to see her direct this feature written by novelist Andrea Seigel (To Feel Stuff, The Kid Table). I tend to relate to stories about people coming to terms with the fact that they’re adults – maybe a little bit more than I should admit – so this seems right up my ally! It also has a great cast. I will pretty much watch Sam Rockwell do anything.
For more information: http://filmguide.sundance.org/film/13882/laggies
Hellion – Directed and written by Kat Candler
Category: US Dramatic Competition
Description from Sundance: “When motocross and heavy metal obsessed, 13-year-old Jacob’s delinquent behavior forces CPS to place his little brother Wes with his aunt, Jacob and his emotionally absent father must finally take responsibility for their actions and each other in order to bring Wes home. Cast: Aaron Paul, Juliette Lewis, Josh Wiggins, Deke Garner, Jonny Mars, Walt Roberts.”
Hellion was written and directed by Kat Candler and is based on her short film of the same name that screened at Sundance in 2012. You can see the trailer for the short here. Set in a refinery town Texas, I think Hellion will tell a story that is uniquely specific to its location. I’m also really interested to see Candler’s direction of the father-son relationship portrayed by Breaking Bad’s Aaron Paul and his young co-star, Josh Wiggins
For more information: http://filmguide.sundance.org/film/13906/hellion
Liar’s Dice – Directed and written by Geetu Mohandas
Category: World Cinema Dramatic Competition
Description from Sundance: “Kamala, a young woman from the village of Chitkul, leaves her native land with her daughter to search for her missing husband. Along the journey, they encounter Nawazudin, a free-spirited army deserter with his own selfish motives who helps them reach their destination. Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Geetanjali Thapa, Manya Gupta. International Premiere.”
Liar’s Dice is the feature directorial debut for Geetu Mohandas. Mohandas has had a successful career as an actor Malayalam cinema from the time she was a child. I think it’s inspiring that she’s now also embarking on career as a director and writer. I’m also interested to see Monhandas’ portrayal of today’s working class India – a world I admittedly don’t know enough about. Additionally, with a strong female lead and a story that seems filled with adventure and suspense, this movie is a definite on my “to watch” list.
For more information: http://filmguide.sundance.org/film/13923/liars_dice
Obvious Child – Directed and written by Gillian Robespierre
Category: NEXT <=>
Description from Sundance: “An honest comedy about what happens when Brooklyn comedian Donna Stern gets dumped, fired, and pregnant, just in time for the worst/best Valentine’s Day of her life. Cast: Jenny Slate, Jake Lacy, Gaby Hoffmann, David Cross, Gabe Liedman, Richard Kind.World Premiere.”
Obvious Child is based on writer/director Gillian Robespierre’s 2009 short by the same name. It looks funny and touching, and it stars the hilarious Jenny Slate. There’s actually a Kickstarter page (which is still active) for the feature-length film where you can see clips from the movie and read more about project. Here’s what Ropespierre writes (on Kickstarter) about the short that inspired the feature: “I first made the “Obvious Child” short film in the Winter of 2009 with my friends Anna Bean and Karen Maine. We were frustrated by the limited representations of young women’s experience with pregnancy, let alone growing up. We were waiting to see a more honest film, or at least, a story that was closer to many of the stories we knew. We weren’t sure how long that wait was going to be, so we decided to tell the story ourselves.” I mean…that’s pretty great, right?
For more information: http://filmguide.sundance.org/film/13917/obvious_child
Infinitely Polar Bear – Directed and written by Maya Forbes
Category: US Dramatic Competition
Description from Sundance: “A manic-depressive mess of a father tries to win back his wife by attempting to take full responsibility of their two young, spirited daughters, who don’t make the overwhelming task any easier. Cast: Mark Ruffalo, Zoe Saldana, Imogene Wolodarsky, Ashley Aufderheide.”
Maya Forbes’ credits as a writer include The Rocker, Monsters vs. Aliens, and Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days. She also served as a writer and executive producer on both The Larry Sanders Show and The Naked Truth. Infinitely Polar Bear, inspired by events from her own childhood with a bi-polar father, marks her directorial debut. This movie sounds personal, funny, and moving. It also happens to have a stellar cast. On an interesting side note, Infinitely Polar Bear was executive produced by J.J. Abrams. According to this Vanity Fair article, Forbes and Abrams actually met at a park where their children played together.
For more information: http://filmguide.sundance.org/film/13961/infinitely_polar_bear
As I said earlier, these are just a few of the many films written and directed by women screening at Sundance this year – I haven’t even dipped into the documentary and short film categories in this post. I’d write about all of them but I’d be waaaaay over my word limit for this article. Plus, I’m writing this at about 2:50pm on December 23rd, and I still haven’t STARTED my Christmas shopping or even taken a shower today yet. So, please check out https://www.sundance.org/festival/ for full festival coverage. If you spot any films you’re excited about and want to share, post them in the comment section below.
Congrats to all of this year’s Sundance participants!